In a world where talent is equally distributed, but opportunity is not, iMentor is fighting to rebalance the odds and give every young person a chance to realize their dreams. iMentor builds mentoring relationships that empower students in low-income communities to graduate high school, succeed in college, and achieve their ambitions. Students work with their mentors one-on-one, in-person and online, to develop strong personal relationships, nurture a college aspiration, navigate the college application process, and build critical skills that lead to college success. iMentor partners with public schools to ensure every student in the schools receives a mentor. 

Since 1999, iMentor has connected more than 25,000 students with mentors, and this year iMentor is serving nearly 9,000 students across the country. iMentor Chicago launched in 2015 with 207 pairs, and has grown to serving 1,334 students at 4 schools in 2018-19. 

iMentor has been recognized through funding from many of the leading education funders in the country, including the Ballmer Group, the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, the Robin Hood Foundation, the Bezos Family Foundation, New Profit Inc., and the Kresge Foundation. As a team, we are collaborative, fun, bring passion and joy to our work, and deeply believe in human potential.  iMentor was recently named one of the Best Nonprofits to Work For by The Nonprofit Times. Read more about our work and values at: http://www.imentor.org

We believe that people of all backgrounds deserve equal access to educational opportunities. Recognizing that our country’s history of racism and systemic oppression continues to drive educational disparities for students of color, we give special focus to addressing the economic and racial divides that impact the communities we serve. We are committed to the collective work and intentional investment necessary to consistently move in the direction of educational equity and inclusion.

The Program Manager, Post-Secondary Success (PM) will be responsible for providing strategic guidance for mentee and mentor pairs enrolled in iMentor’s Post-Secondary Program that builds a path of success for students through post-secondary education. They will help mentees matriculate to, enroll in, and remain enrolled in 2-year or 4-year undergraduate and progressive pathway programs by providing targeted advisement; including registration deadlines, financial aid information, and applicable enrollment updates relevant to the post-secondary experience.

Reporting to the Sr. Director of Program, iMentor Chicago, the PM will work to leverage and engage mentors as a “go-to” resource for enrolled students, providing timely and relevant information that focuses on how they can help mentees navigate the post-secondary environment and progressive pathway space. The PM will translate their knowledge of the post-secondary landscape, in including city/region specific resources, to coach volunteer mentors who support mentees through their transition from high school.

The ideal candidate will have at least three (3) years of professional experience working to support programming within a post-secondary context, a strong customer service orientation, a passion for helping students achieve post-secondary success and the ability to motivate adult volunteers of all ages and backgrounds.

Responsibilities 

• Provide virtual and in-person support to approximately 150 to 250 mentors and mentees as they transition from the iMentor high school program into their respective post-secondary path 

• Conduct individual mentor coaching to ensure mentee progress through 2-year and 4-year colleges

• Research Chicago-based progressive pathways and deliver top-notch advising services to a cohort of progressive pathways bound students

• Deliver college and career advising services to help mentor and mentee pairs navigate important deadlines and decisions within the college and employment landscape 

• Devise targeted proactive and reactive case management plans to address barriers to mentor and mentee success in the program

• Document and track all support provided to participants; maintain high quality, timely notes on pair progress in the program

• Analyze and manage data; create targeted weekly focus lists to increase participation and drive programmatic outcomes

• Work closely with iMentor’s Research and Evaluation Team to identify and report out on key data points relevant to understanding college persistence trends on both a national and local level

• Collaborate with the National Program Team to disseminate monthly post-secondary curriculum content and resources

• Contribute content to mass text campaigns, e-mail marketing, social media, and listservs to drive engagement, persistence, and matriculation among program participants

• Partner with program leadership to research, reach out and foster relationships with progressive pathways institutions and non-profit organizations

• Represent iMentor Chicago alongside Sr. Director around Chicago to brainstorm, research, devise and imagine progressive post-secondary pathways across the city and local communities

• Develop and facilitate Post-Secondary Program orientation, info sessions, and professional development events (career and skills building sessions) 

• Host iMentor virtual and in-person office hours to support mentors and mentees 

• Attend external events to enhance the visibility of the program within the post-secondary access community and develop new program contacts

• Manage 12th grade pair enrollment in and matriculation in Post-Secondary Program and pathways

• Work in conjunction with the high school program to orient pairs from the 12th grade to the Post-Secondary Program

• Alongside Associate Director of 12 Grade Program, train 12th Grade Managers on post-secondary pathways, resources to coach and guide pairs and provide additional support during transition

• Three (3)+ years of professional experience in college advising, admissions, college access programming and persistence, customer service and volunteer engagement

• Demonstrated interest in working with people from various backgrounds and comfort interacting remotely with constituents

• Intimate knowledge of Illinois and Chicago-based public and private school systems (UIC, City Colleges, DePaul and other local institutions), plus experience working with opportunity and progressive-pathway programs 

• Comfort with using data and research to drive program results and assess engagement trends

• Excited about the college access space and supporting first-generation college students as they matriculate to and through college and progressive pathways

• Must have a customer service orientation with demonstrated support for remote program constituents

• Must be a self-starter and proactive problem solver, able to elevate challenges and collaborate with leadership to develop solutions

• Proven effectiveness in high-volume case management and customer/constituent support within a fast-paced setting

• Strong organization and project management skills with ability to balance multiple priorities and high-volume tasks

• Experience with large-group event facilitation, preferably with young adults or adult volunteers

• Must also demonstrate the ability to maintain confidential and sensitive information

• Travel to external meetings, partner schools and college campuses within Chicago may be required – transportation is not provided

• Demonstrated alignment with iMentor's mission, values, and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

• Bachelor’s degree required

• Our organization works in partnership with district public schools across the country. In doing so we must meet all compliance requirements of those districts.

• Salary commensurate with experience

• Up to 100% employer funded comprehensive medical and dental coverage

• 18 days paid annual vacation and 13 paid holidays, and most iMentor functions closed between

• Christmas and New Year’s Day

• 401K match up to 4%

• Significant opportunities for professional development and growth

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Visit www.imentor.org/jobs to submit a resume and detailed cover letter describing your interest in and qualifications for this position. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis, so we encourage you to apply as soon as possible.  Sorry, due to the high-volume of applicants for this and other positions here at iMentor, no phone, email, mail, or fax inquiries will receive a response.